I admit it - Driving home tonight in horrible traffic...... (Austin: camp, live in)

[Bravebird79]

*giggles* Austin traffic is soooo cute! *pinches Austin's cheeks*

lol

*falls into a scary, gloomy trance of flashbacks to DC Metro traffic*

[austinnerd]

Originally Posted by bluesboy63

Is traffic typically worse heading in a certain direction? I know that living here in Reno our issues are minimal but I go home heading south cruising 75 MPH the whole way no problem. The people heading north on the other hand are in a traffic jam as far as the eye can see. I've always based where I live in town on that. Is Austin similar but obviously on a much larger scale? Also living on the outskirts, everything we need on a daily basis is right around the corner. The only time we go downtown is on the weekends for some fun when traffic issues are much less.

Absolutely it does depend, at least on some of the high/free ways:

183 - SB sucks in the morning (Spicewood Springs to Mopac), NB sucks in the afternoon (Burnet to Spicewood Springs)
Mopac - sucks SB (183 to 45th) and NB (not sure where it starts, but it pretty much clears up after you get past the river/Enfield) in the mornings , sucks NB (river/Enfield to 2222) and SB (45th to south of the river) in the afternoons
360 - sucks SB (183 to Westlake Blvd) in the mornings, NB (opposite) in the afternoons
I35 - generally seems to suck all the time no matter when/where, but I'm sure others can provide more detail

So in Austin the general rule is that traffic heads towards downtown in the mornings and out of downtown in the afternoons.

[artsyguy]

I like how almost everyone drives a van or a suburban truck.

When you get closer to campus the pollution gets much worse because the students drive beat up older cars that don't have the sophisticated pollution filters that modern cars have.

Originally Posted by Bravebird79

*giggles* Austin traffic is soooo cute! *pinches Austin's cheeks*

lol

*falls into a scary, gloomy trance of flashbacks to DC Metro traffic*

[bgrn198]

Originally Posted by artsyguy

I like how almost everyone drives a van or a suburban truck.

When you get closer to campus the pollution gets much worse because the students drive beat up older cars that don't have the sophisticated pollution filters that modern cars have.

What's your point? there's people that drive trucks and Suburbans every where not just here I see them in Houston,Dallas and San Antonio.

[jobert]

Originally Posted by austinnerd

I35 - generally seems to suck all the time no matter when/where, but I'm sure others can provide more detail

So in Austin the general rule is that traffic heads towards downtown in the mornings and out of downtown in the afternoons.

Go to Google Maps, and select the "traffic" tab. You can see the congestion and select the time of day and day of the week. I will say that 35 north approaching downtown is bad 730a to 9a and 35 south is bad from 430p to 6p. There is always Congress, First, and Manchacha to take into town as well. The other 90% time it's smooth sailing on 35 unless there is an event. Pretty much, unless you live central and can walk to where you need, traffic will be a part of your life.

[soIndecisive]

Thanks Jobert, that's a good tip, never noticed it was there..

[Exiled Texan]

Lamar during rush hour is almost as congested Mopac at rush hour.

[eepstein]

gas guzzling F150's, Tahoes and Suburbans rule the Austin roadways!! You have to look HARD to actually find a car in this town. But you are right, when you get closer to UT, you do tend to see more cars (mainly from Dallas probably) For some reason a lot of people in AR drive vans, but I dont see too many down in austin.

Originally Posted by artsyguy

I like how almost everyone drives a van or a suburban truck.

When you get closer to campus the pollution gets much worse because the students drive beat up older cars that don't have the sophisticated pollution filters that modern cars have.

[veloman777]

I pedaled my bike 20 miles from 183/Mopac to Lakeway in less than an hour. It's only 15 minutes faster by car - when there is no serious traffic. Otherwise its about equal. My gf who comes from Lakeway, sometimes it takes her over an hour to get here.

What a joke. That's pretty sad that a pedal pusher such as me can beat a car to Lakeway.

[veloman777]

Now that my gf lives in Oak Hill, you'd think driving a car straight down Mopac would be faster than a bike.

Right?

Well, if it's during rush hour - not a chance. It took 1 hour, 20 min to go from 183/Mopac to Oak Hill, which is 16 miles, starting at 4:40pm. Took me over an hour just to get to the river downtown. That's 8mph average.

Driving home at midnight, the highways were almost empty. But for anyone who has to commute around Austin during the rush hours, I think they are crazy. This culture we live in seems a bit wacky.